>Banana Republic (a wonderfully ironic name), Gap, and Old Navy (all are actually the same company) have clobbered Levis out of the market.< Andreas, you are so, like, five minutes ago. A.A.: Or, so September 10, at least according to William Safire in the fall of 2001. Also, I heard a statistic that there is a bankruptcy in this country every six seconds. Bankruptcies now surpass heart attacks per second. Apparently bankruptcies don't come from $280 jeans and granite countertops but just from trying to make ends meet. I think when one of two incomes gets sick is when people typically get in trouble. The pressure to consume can't help. Andy ------------------------------------------------------------------ To change your Lit-Ideas settings (subscribe/unsub, vacation on/off, digest on/off), visit www.andreas.com/faq-lit-ideas.html